This easy spinach cob loaf recipe is a classic Aussie party dip and such an entertainer’s delight. You’ll need just 6 easy ingredients, and your friends will be begging for the recipe!
In This Post You’ll Learn
Why We Love This
The epic cob loaf recipe belongs at family gatherings. It’s always one of the first appetisers to go with guests literally ‘scraping the bottom of the barrel’ to get the last dip offerings available!
Cob loaf dips are so quick and easy to prepare, making them a true entertainer’s delight. They’re especially good at pot lucks or Christmas parties.
They even make for a great entrée for a family dinner of 6 – 8 people. You’ll want a light dinner recipe afterwards though, as the dip is surprisingly filling!
Related: Spinach & Cheese Triangles / Greek Salad / Prawn Cocktail Salad
What is Cob Loaf?
Cob loaf is a dip served in a bread bowl. It’s a classic Australian party dish, which was super popular in the 80’s but has actually made for over a hundred years. In recent years it has made a huge comeback – and rightly so in our opinion!
Spinach dip loaf is one of the most traditional and popular fillings, right alongside cheese and bacon. Which makes us think, we’d love to serve this up next to our honey baked camembert. We’d definitely be dipping into all three.
Where We Learnt This
Mum’s recipes are always a favourite. They hold that nostalgia of parties, barbecues and just general good times. So of course we went to see her to ask exactly how she makes it so tasty every. single. time.
What You’ll Need
Six simple ingredients really bring together a fantastic dish to impress!
- Cob Loaf – We use a plain white cob loaf from the supermarket. You can also use sourdough, wholemeal or homemade if you prefer.
- Spinach – Frozen spinach works a treat here. We used half a bag (250g) and thawed it quickly in the microwave in about a minute or two, before breaking it apart with a fork. You can also use fresh spinach, just chop it up and steam or boil it first, then use as per normal in the recipe once cooled.
- Sour Cream – This brings the creaminess to the dish and works so well with the spinach and onion. You can substitute with cream cheese or ricotta if you prefer.
- Mayonnaise – We love Kewpie mayonnaise in everything, as it really takes this cob loaf recipe to the next level. You can substitute with regular whole egg mayonnaise if you prefer, or omit and use more sour cream instead.
- Spring Vegetable Soup Powder – This adds huge flavour to the mix. There’s plenty of salt in here, so you shouldn’t need any extra, but you can add in a crack of black pepper if you want. Sub with other flavours like French onion soup or 2 tbsp of vegetable or chicken stock. For a less salty result, use 1 tbsp of chopped garlic instead.
- Red Onion – The crunch this adds to the dish is wonderful. You can also substitute with other popular options such as spring onion or water chestnuts.
How to Make Cob Loaf
First, gather your ingredients: See recipe card below for measurements.
Prepare the cob loaf:
- Preheat the oven to 110°C / 230°F. Slice 2 cm / 1 inch off the top of the cob loaf using a sharp serrated knife to create a lid. Scoop out the soft bread inside, breaking it up into bite size pieces. Place the bread pieces, hollow cob loaf and the lid onto a baking tray lined with baking paper. Bake for 5-10 minutes to lightly crisp the bread.
Make the spinach dip:
- Lay two sheets of paper towel on a plate and place the thawed spinach in the middle. Wrap up into a tight ball and squeeze out as much liquid as you can.
- Place the spinach into a medium mixing bowl. Add in the sour cream, Kewpie mayonnaise, red onion and spring vegetable soup powder. Mix well.
Optional: Cover and place in the fridge for an hour (up to overnight) to allow the flavours from the soup mix to really soak into the dip.
To serve:
- Preheat the oven again to 180°C / 360°F. Spoon the spinach dip into the cob loaf and place onto a tray lined with baking paper. Bake for 5 minutes to slightly warm the dip. Transfer to a large serving plate or platter. Cut the lid into bite size pieces and arrange them around the cob loaf with the bread pieces. Serve immediately.
Wandercook’s Tips
- Serving – For the freshest results, pop the filling into the bread just before serving. You can make the spinach filling the day before to save on time if you need.
- Storage – If you need to transport the dip, you can cover the loaf and a sheet of aluminium foil to keep everything fresh on arrival.
- Leftovers – Any leftovers (doubt there will be!) won’t keep well, as the dip soaks into the bread over time and will become increasingly soggy. Best enjoyed fresh!
- Need another dip? Make a quick mushroom pate to serve it up along side for any extra bread.
FAQs
Cob loaf can be served hot or cold depending on your preference. Cold works best in summer, whereas a warm cob loaf dip straight out of the oven is guaranteed to warm you up on a wintery night!
We love serving up our cob loaf dips with extra baguette slices, extra crackers, or fresh veggie slices such as cucumber, carrot and celery sticks.
Slice the empty loaf into pieces and share them around! There’ll be just enough dip left on the inside surface for them to be just as delicious.
Try these amazing recipes next:
- Australian Pork Sausage Rolls – Our homemade take on a classic bakery snack.
- Crispy Thai Spring Rolls – The ultimate dinner party starter.
- Simple Zucchini Slice – Perfect for dinner with leftovers for lunch.
- Australian Cheesy Potato Bake – Mum’s most popular recipe and epic BBQ side!
- Mini Meat Pies (Party Pies) – Our go-to for feeding a crowd at family gatherings.
★ Did you make this recipe? Please leave a comment and a star rating below!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cob loaf 450-500g
- 250 g spinach frozen and thawed
- 1 cup sour cream 250g
- 1/2 cup Kewpie mayonnaise 90g or whole egg
- 1 red onion
- 1 spring vegetable soup mix 30g or French onion
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 110°C / 230°F.
- Slice around 2 cm / 1 inch off the top of the cob loaf, and remove the soft bread inside. Break it up into bite size pieces and place onto a tray lined with baking paper. Add the lid and empty cob loaf and pop the tray into the oven for 5-10 minutes to lightly crisp the bread.1 cob loaf
- Lay two sheets of paper towel on a plate and place the thawed spinach in the middle. Wrap up into a tight ball and squeeze out the extra water.250 g spinach
- Unwrap the spinach and place in a medium bowl. Next, add in the sour cream, Kewpie mayonnaise, red onion and spring vegetable soup powder. Mix together until combined well.1 cup sour cream, 1/2 cup Kewpie mayonnaise, 1 red onion, 1 spring vegetable soup mix
- Optional: Cover and place in the fridge for an hour (up to overnight) to allow the flavours to develop further from the soup mix.
When Ready To Serve
- Pre-heat the oven to 180°C / 360°F.
- Scoop the spinach dip into the cob loaf and place onto a tray lined with baking paper. Bake for 5 minutes to slightly warm the dip. Remove and place on a large plate. Cut the lid into bite size pieces and add them and the remaining bread pieces around cob loaf dip. Serve immediately.
Video
Recipe Notes
- Serving – For the freshest results, pop the filling in the bread just before serving. You can make the spinach filling the day before to save on time if you need.
- Storage – If you need to transport the dip, you can cover the loaf and pieces with aluminium foil to keep everything fresh on arrival.
- Leftovers – Any leftovers (doubt there will be!) won’t keep well, as the dip soaks into the bread over time, so we recommend you throw it out.
- Ingredients:
- Cob Loaf – Plain white works well from the supermarket. You can also use sourdough, wholemeal or homemade.
- Spinach – Frozen spinach works a treat here. We used half a bag (250g) and thawed it quickly in the microwave in about a minute or two, before breaking it apart with a fork. You can also use fresh spinach, just chop it up and steam or boil it first, then use as per normal in the recipe once cooled.
- Sour Cream – Substitute with cream cheese or ricotta if you prefer.
- Mayonnaise – Substitute with regular whole egg mayonnaise if you prefer, or omit and use more sour cream instead.
- Spring Vegetable Soup Powder – Substitute with French onion soup or 2 tbsp of vegetable or chicken stock. For a less salty result, use 1 tbsp of chopped garlic.
- Red Onion – Can sub with spring onion or water chestnuts.
Nutrition
12 Comments
Lucretia Borgia
02/08/2022 at 5:58 pmLet’s do the Time Warp Again!
This number went down an absolute treat with a party of Boomers at our place: definitely a Twin-Set (look it up) or Crimplene Pants-Suit (look it up as well) number…
I used veg stock powder as suggested and left the mix to mellow ovenight too.
Only note of consequence: when tearing the bread out of the loaf shell, keep the bits as big as possible.
Wandercooks
12/08/2022 at 11:43 amHaha that’s so awesome Lucretia. So glad it is still a hit, even after all these years! Great tip about the bread chunks. It’s a fine line between wanting more bread to dip, and wanting them big enough to get a good scoop!
Huong
18/12/2022 at 7:33 pmSo delicious and nostalgic! Brought to a small Christmas party and not a crumb left! I also added in cream cheese for a cheesier taste.
Wandercooks
18/12/2022 at 8:31 pmOh nice work! Happy to hear everyone enjoyed it so much and nice work adding in the cream cheese. 🙌🙌
Helan
30/08/2021 at 5:57 pmThanks for sharing this amazing recipe. My family loved it. I will be sharing this recipe with my friends. Hope they will like it.
Wandercooks
02/09/2021 at 9:43 amYou’re welcome Helan!
Ms Gussie
29/05/2021 at 3:59 pmThis was SOOOOO GOOD!!! Had not thought to use spring vegetable instead of French onion (so tasty!) and your really simple hack of squeezing out spinach by using paper towel instead of hands! So OBVIOUS now that you’ve pointed it out!
Wandercooks
29/05/2021 at 4:26 pmAww yay! Brilliant, so glad you enjoyed it. Yes – the paper towel makes it SO much easier! 😀 Enjoy the rest of your weekend and happy cooking!
Raina Foster
10/07/2021 at 8:51 pmI substituted the mayonnaise for 250gm cream cheese, and the vegetable soup for French onion (and because I used this I omitted tue red onion) and added 1/2 cup shredded tasty/cheddar cheese. Delicious!
I also like to heat the ingredients first in a saucepan on the stove that way it is piping hot and I don’t have to cook the bread for as long in the oven:)
Wandercooks
12/07/2021 at 9:55 amHey Raina! Love the idea of warming the dip in the saucepan – such a great tip. We’ll have to add it to the recipe. 😀 Hope you enjoyed every bite!
Renee
28/05/2021 at 12:40 pmI can’t believe as an Aussie this is the first time I’ve ever made cob loaf!! It was so easy. I did a couple of changes… I subbed sour cream for cottage cheese in an effort to be healthier and added a little bacon cos bacon makes everything better 😂
So easy and so delicious.
Wandercooks
29/05/2021 at 10:17 amAmazing work on your first cob loaf! So happy to hear you enjoyed it – and totally agreed with bacon, that’s an awesome addition!